High grade non-keys losing value?

[Sqeggs]

I think so, too. The success of super hero movies has really been rather unexpected, if you think about it. Stan Lee spent years trying to interest a major studio in the Marvel properties. Super heroes on prime time TV consisted of the 1950s Superman series, the short-lived 1960s campy Batman series, and the even shorter-lived Green Hornet series -- unless I'm forgetting something.

 

 

 

I also remember watching 'The Flash,' 'Shazam,' 'Isis,' and I watched a few episodes of the new Green Arrow show named 'Arrow' plus there was Spiderman that I think was a made for TV movie, but it possibly could have been a TV show.

 

More than I had remembered off the top of my head ... but they are all kind of marginal shows. Nothing to really indicate that superhero movies would have the success they have had in recent years.

[jimjum12]

I think so, too. The success of super hero movies has really been rather unexpected, if you think about it. Stan Lee spent years trying to interest a major studio in the Marvel properties. Super heroes on prime time TV consisted of the 1950s Superman series, the short-lived 1960s campy Batman series, and the even shorter-lived Green Hornet series -- unless I'm forgetting something.

 

 

 

I also remember watching 'The Flash,' 'Shazam,' 'Isis,' and I watched a few episodes of the new Green Arrow show named 'Arrow' plus there was Spiderman that I think was a made for TV movie, but it possibly could have been a TV show.

 

More than I had remembered off the top of my head ... but they are all kind of marginal shows. Nothing to really indicate that superhero movies would have the success they have had in recent years.

 

I remember being a teenager on the way to young adulthood when these came out. I remember being happy to see them break into mainstream and yet realizing that mass appeal due to the shows was unlikely. They couldn't divest from the camp..... except maybe Hulk, which was the most popular. The biggest setback to the future of comics(and collecting) other than a technology shift from paper to video is the death of the neighorhood spinner rack. Most of us long timers were pulled into comics through POP impulse buys that were sustainable due to the sheer availability. Now a kid will have to snag a parent (both of whom work, nowadays) to make a cross town odyssey to the comic shop instead of biking up to the corner. Kids aren't able to obssess anymore due to limited availability...... only older teens who are exposed through PG movies and are already just one step away from chicks and cars. There is no more 8 year incubation period to ingrain a love for the medium like when I was beginning. Most hard core collectors today started at 7 or 8 and are semi-lifers. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[rjpb]

First customer in today, walks up to the counter and announces that he's new to collecting, and want to know what he should invest in.

 

I thought about pointing him to this thread, but I guess it's not very good business to terrify a potential consumer!

 

What did you advise him to do......Ga or SA or both or NONE?

 

The 1948 issue of Highlights for Children with the first Goofus and Gallant once the movie is announced.

 

 

You should keep it where it belongs....in your collection

 

Nah, I traded it for the Original Art.

[jimbo_707]

Most hard core collectors today started at 7 or 8 and are semi-lifers.

Agreed! I bought a Batman 372 off a spinner rack at the corner store near my house around the time I turned 10 in April of '84 (so I guess I was a late bloomer), then bought a Tec 538 (which was a month older but still on the rack) and then a Tec 539. It seems like there was some kind of storyline that went back and forth between the two titles, and that got me hooked. I can't imagine really getting interested in any hobby that I didn't discover until adulthood. Nostalgia for my childhood is, I'm sure, a major part of what keeps me collecting comics.

[jimjum12]

Most hard core collectors today started at 7 or 8 and are semi-lifers.

Agreed! I bought a Batman 372 off a spinner rack at the corner store near my house around the time I turned 10 in April of '84 (so I guess I was a late bloomer), then bought a Tec 538 (which was a month older but still on the rack) and then a Tec 539. It seems like there was some kind of storyline that went back and forth between the two titles, and that got me hooked. I can't imagine really getting interested in any hobby that I didn't discover until adulthood. Nostalgia for my childhood is, I'm sure, a major part of what keeps me collecting comics.

 

...... in my life, it's what I refer to as "The Charleston Bridge Dynamic". As a young fellow on the way to Forida with the family, we crossed the Charlston Bridge in S.C....... It was huge and on a foggy morning it seemed to stretch into the clouds. Going through there many years later, I remember stating that I could hardly wait to get to that awesome Charleston Bridge and was told we had just gone over it a few miles back and all I had seen was an ordinary bridge. That's the difference in collecting at 7 versus 17...... GOD BLESS....

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[Mmehdy]

First customer in today, walks up to the counter and announces that he's new to collecting, and want to know what he should invest in.

 

I thought about pointing him to this thread, but I guess it's not very good business to terrify a potential consumer!

 

What did you advise him to do......Ga or SA or both or NONE?

 

The 1948 issue of Highlights for Children with the first Goofus and Gallant once the movie is announced.

 

 

You should keep it where it belongs....in your collection

 

Nah, I traded it for the Original Art.

 

So you traded UP.....good job

[ComicConnoisseur]

No doubt the Disney characters and marketed heavily and will be around for a long time, that doesn't mean high end Ducks books will be bought by future generations. What are the demographics of current high-end Duck book owners? When they sell who will buy them?

 

I don't think many Gen X and Gen Y buyers will and this is unlikely to change because of Ipad apps and cartoons watched by toddlers.

 

The issue is changing times, interests and related purchasing habits not that the characters will be totally obscure or irrelevant.

 

 

Probably the safest statement is that paying big money for any collectible is rolling the dice. Anyone using collectibles as a big part of an investment portfolio he will rely on for his kids' college tuition or his retirement is essentially playing the lottery.

 

+1

 

But the problem is that many people are doing just that. Just by the PM's and emails I receive, I can tell you that there are people on this forum (and otherwise) that have and are doing just this. That is what is scary about the antiques and collectibles market in this day in age. Mind you, these are not dealers; these are people who justify their addiction to spending and collecting by calling it 'investing.'

 

 

So what is a "safe bet" to you Mint??

 

Toys? Nope

Original Art? Nope

Real Estate? HELL nope

Stocks? Puhleeze, nope

Antiques? Not a chance, nope

 

So what, in your learned opinion is the safest bet to "invest" in other than comics that add dividends both to your balance sheet and the enjoyment of your life?

My opinion my friend is that

the safest to invest in is the blue chips of every hobby or stock. The Holy Grails of toys, comics,coins,baseball cards, Magic The Gathering cards,Star Wars action figures and whatever else that has a decent following always get a premium compared to niche or common stuff.

Yes, even the holy grail of Pokémon cards will bring you some good money.

Rare Pokemon card attracts record-breaking $50k offers on eBay!